Whisper
by Youkai-ChoGonou
Summary: MILD insinuation if you read between the lines. Summary: An entire country's beliefs based on a single feather. What happens when a king that refuses to give up the feather, uses it against Sakura's friends? I suck at summaries.
1. Chapter 1

Tsubasa 

Reservoir Chronicle:

**-Whisper-**

"—_The Voice Only She Could Hear—"_

"I have them in my sights…"

"Good. Be sure to target the young one. He's the one we want."

"Yes sir!"

An arrow adorned with a special feather was loaded into the bow and aimed at young Syaoran. This special arrow was known as the Arrow of Manipulation, possessing great powers used to win many wars through out the ages. The sound of a taught string unleashing the arrow was all the warning they had before things went terribly, terribly wrong…

* * * * * * *

Each feather in each world had its own special power. That was something they'd come to realize throughout their journey between dimensions. Some could prove quite troublesome while others could prove rather useful. One thing that remained consistent was that the power of the feathers usually always tended to have an effect on the world they land in, whether it be negative or positive. This world was no different. It was rumored that a great relic fell from the 'Heavens' several hundred years ago and assisted their country's hero in freeing their civilization from a tyrant. Since then it's been used to win many wars that followed and represented their freedom from oppression. This feather would not be easy to obtain without retribution from the country's residents.

"Hyuu~! Look at the size of the sacred temple!" Fai exclaimed as he spun around, looking up into the mighty rafters. Designs scrolled up the marble walls from the floor in leaf gold winding and twirling all the way to the ceiling closely resembling the pattern on Sakura's feathers. It was incredible! The floors had the same pattern etched into them, looking as if they'd taken years simply to finish. Paintings of an ancient arrow fletched with Sakura's feather filled the spaces between designs on the walls. The corridor looked as if it went on for at least a mile before reaching a door sealed with what appeared to Fai to be a curse.

"Kuro-pon! What's that? What's that?" Their small white companion chirped as it plopped down on the ninja's head and pointed at the seal on the door that appeared to be glowing.

"Keh! How should I know? And don't call me Kuro-pon!" The black haired man snapped.

Syaoran studied the mark, tracing a finger over the glowing edges. There was writing scrolled around it but it was not a script he was familiar with. However, he assumed it said something about those who break this seal will face a penalty of some such or how unbreakable the seal was. Whatever it said, it appeared to be a warning that more than likely proved close to useless when it came down to helping them open the doors. Despite that, he couldn't help but feel the desire to translate it.

"Hnn… Looks like a curse." Fai piped up as if it was nothing more than an amateur guess. "It would be best not to tamper with it just yet… not until we know more about it." He suggested, which actually meant it was a dangerous curse that they shouldn't take lightly.

Kurogane's eyes narrowed a fraction on the blonde mage. "Isn't this kind of thing right up your alley?"

"Mm, is it?" Fai asked in a mock innocent tone and shrugged. "Even if it were, I'm not strong enough to break such a curse." He lied.

The ninja didn't quite buy that excuse but he didn't verbally question it. He simply gave the magician a disapproving look and continued. "How irritating…" Kurogane growled.

Mokona giggled and bounced over to Fai's shoulder. "Kuro-Kuro's angry because he can't beat it up!" With that, the mage smiled up at the little white creature and nodded in agreement. Kurogane, however, didn't find it nearly as amusing as the other two.

"Shut up, Shiro Manjuu." Kurogane grumbled.

Syaoran studied the markings a while longer, able to skillfully tune out the bickering of Fai, Kurogane, and Mokona, and concluded that he couldn't decipher them without a form of reference to the language. It was just far too different from any other language he'd previously come in contact with that he could recall. The small brunette glanced back at the princess for any form of recognition in her eyes. She was young and inexperienced, but perhaps she knew something he didn't.

The young princess was staring right back at Syaoran without a clue. "If we ask around the village, someone might be able to tell us something useful." Sakura timidly attempted to help. Syaoran nodded. That sounded like the best way to go about this for right now. Directly asking wouldn't probably be so wise, but working a conversation in the general direction might do the trick.

Fai had long since slipped out of the little squabble unnoticed, leaving Mokona and Kurogane to argue as he listened in on the kids' conversation. It sounded like a pretty good idea to him as well.

Syaoran turned around and began the little trek to the exit of the temple. About half way down the long hall he noticed two newly stationed guards that hadn't been there when they entered the temple. The boy felt almost uncomfortable under the watchful stare. It felt as if the guards were observing their every move. Syaoran glanced around at the other members of his party. Fai _seemed_ blissfully unaware, Kurogane was almost returning the intimidating stare to the two guards, Mokona was oblivious, and the princess scooted closer to Syaoran uncomfortably.

As they brushed passed, one of the guards reached for his weapon, ready to draw it. He didn't like being stared down by the ninja in black and red. If anyone was going to be intimidating it was going to be him, not some arrogant traveler! Before Kurogane could act, the mage _tripped_ over his own feet and stumbled onto the guard, placing one hand on his shoulder and the other on the hilt of the sword for support while simultaneously keeping the weapon sheathed. The guard shoved him off but at the same time, whatever tension had developed between the guard and the ninja was quickly forgotten.

"Ah'aah! Gomen ne! Silly me. I'm so clumsy!" Fai laughed softly and put on a pleasant fake smile as he recovered his balance after being shoved away. He brushed himself off, ignoring the scrutinizing glare of the ninja, and they continued on their merry little way out of the temple.

***

Having found a nice little inn for the time being, the little group situated themselves around the little tavern down stairs to gather information. Syaoran and Sakura sat at a table watching a small group of men playing cards and swapping stories of adventures. They had been given strict instructions by Kurogane not to have any liquor at least until after they'd gathered some useful information. The last thing he needed was for them to become intoxicated and act like complete morons. So far, Syaoran had learned many things about the country and several different myths as to where the feather originated but nothing that would help them break the seal or when the guards' shifts changed. He discovered that the people here were used to travelers and seemed very friendly towards them so long as they weren't caught practicing magic in the open. He found that one of the rules of this country was the forbidding of most forms of magic excluding healing and regeneration spells. The boy suspected it had to do with the seal and the feather.

The king and his high mage were permitted to study whatever magic they wished as well as a few of the highest ranking royal guardsmen, but beyond that, anyone caught practicing the 'forbidden arts' was immediately arrested and punished for their crime. Minor and first offences were typically met with a few years incarceration in a magical rehab facility where the person was 'cleansed' of the Dark Deity's influence then released. However, those who committed a more serious offence were imprisoned for life or executed depending on the type of magic they preformed.

One of the men elaborated, saying those that returned from the rehab facility seemed to be missing a piece of themselves. Often leading to a dramatic personality change and in some cases, suicide. Those few that have survived claim they have no memory of performing such a heinous crime which the Arch Mage explains is caused by the removal of the Dark Deity's grasp on the villager's soul. Once the Dark Deity's claws are latched into the soul, the person is no longer in control, giving them no memory of the events once they are lifted of their curse. The Arch Mage also explains that the reason for the execution of more powerful magic users has to do with the Dark Deity's ability to taint and convert or replace the soul of the original being. Meaning the owner of the body was already dead by the time they committed the crime so the most humane thing to do was to destroy their controlled corpse.

Syaoran had his doubts as to whether the Arch Mage and the king truly believe these 'myths' that they're imposing upon the general public. He could not be completely certain that there isn't a Dark Deity controlling the bodies of the villagers, but his experience has lead him to think somewhat cynically when faced with these kinds of situations. It was more likely that the king is simply manipulating his people to prevent them from using magic in order to keep his reign of power. But simply killing off or erasing the memories of magic users wouldn't sit well with the public and could cause a rebellion. So the Dark Deity was created in the minds of the villagers to give reason for the disappearance of their friends and family as well as justifying the limitation of magic.

Syaoran's thoughts were interrupted as one of the men, somewhat on the drunk side, addressed him.

"Hey kid… wanna try a hand?" The man slurred and waved his cards at Syaoran. "I'll even sport ya the 'iles." He continued and pushed a small pile of square tan tiles towards Syaoran.

'iles was the slang term used to refer to the tiles, or form of currency used in this game representing the actual currency of this country though somewhat smaller in size and made of a wooden-like material. They each had a small feather engraved on them, matching the actual currency of the country but unlike the true currency, they were marked with a deep red center stained into the wood to show they were obviously not the real thing.

"Thank you." Syaoran said politely and took the tiles, divvying one into the central pile that slowly began to grow as other players entered the game. He was dealt a number of cards face down until the dealer finished dealing. He had been observing the game and seemed to grasp most of the rules already. The idea was to gather the lowest collective total with the largest amount of cards. Each card had a number of dots ranging from one to ten on the front. A hand of five cards with one dot on each, adding up to five points beat a hand of two cards with a total of five points between a two dot card and a three dot card.

Sakura gently put a hand on Syaoran's shoulder and smiled sweetly. "Ganbatte, Syaoran-kun." She whispered just before the game began. Syaoran picked up his cards… The first was a one, the second was also a one, the third was a five, the fourth was a two, and the fifth was another one. You were allowed to discard a card each round and draw a new one so long as everyone was still playing. The first person to quit caused the game to end and the hands were displayed. Excluding the player that quit, the hands were counted up and the winner was given the pot. The winner could choose to take their prize and quit the game or leave it and risk the whole thing in a second round. The downside to this game was, until someone quit, you had to discard a card and draw a new one each turn until someone quit or the deck ran out of cards, in which case, the game was automatically ended and all hands were displayed.

When it came to his turn, Syaoran discarded the five card and drew another. It turned out to be another one card. Syaoran couldn't believe his luck. With his free hand he reached up and gently covered Sakura's, still on his shoulder, with his own. The princess always did seem to be lucky at games of chance. Perhaps her _luck_ was rubbing off on him for the moment.

Meanwhile, Kurogane and Fai were sitting at the bar sipping their alcoholic beverages despite Kurogane's protests. The mage was politely chattering away with the lovely tavern woman. To his surprise, she was quickly warming up to the blonde, willing to answer almost all his questions and queries that seemed to be accompanied with a few playful bats of Fai's stunning blue eyes.

Kurogane downed his second glass of the unique alcoholic beverage with a disgusted groan and requested another. Perhaps the alcohol hadn't been such a bad idea after all. He wasn't sure he could sit through this display without it. It wasn't so much that the mage was flirting that bothered him. Absolutely not. It was the fact that he had this woman so easily wound around his little finger with so little effort. As if manipulation came naturally to him. Then again, thinking about it, he supposed it did.

As the tavern woman turned to fix Kurogane another drink, Fai smiled sweetly in the ninja's direction. "Is something bothering Kuro-puu?" He asked playfully in that tone that clearly said he already knew the answer.

"Bastard." Was the best response Fai received before Kurogane looked away.

"My, my… Kuro-sama _is_ mad. Is it because I ignored your alcohol rule?" The magician asked feigning innocence.

"Tch!" He quickly grasped the drink the woman set in front of him and gulped down a good portion of it immediately.

"Hyuu, hyuu! Kuro-pii is jealous that Fai is flirting with the ladies!" Mokona chirped in a sing-song tone as he hopped over and snatched Kurogane's drink, sucking down what was left.

Fai saw the last of Kurogane's restraint fall away like a makeshift dam of sticks and leaves against a raging flood. The ninja reached for his sword behind his cloak, prepared to hack the little white ball of fluff into bits while roaring a battle cry however a rather surprising event seemed to completely stop him in his tracks…

The blonde mage tightly grasped the ninja's wrist, wrenched his hand away from the sword, jerked him close and kissed him on the lips with a gentle little purr. …or at least that's what it appeared to everyone else around. As their chests met, nothing between them but fabric, and Fai's lips brushed Kurogane's, they continued past slightly to rest against the ninja's tanned skin… and he whispered something that only Kurogane could hear:

"Kuro-pon, don't draw your sword. The temple guard we encountered earlier is sitting two tables back watching your every move. Don't give him a reason to arrest you." The magician explained before he pulled back with a devious grin.

The blonde fanned himself and gave Kurogane the most devilish of looks as everyone around that had seen the little scandalous spectacle gaped and stared. "Oh, did I just do that?" Fai asked innocently. "I must have had one too many to drink already. You always do tell me I'm such a light weight, Kuro-sama. I should really listen to you." He said in self admonishment.

Kurogane wasn't quite sure how to react to this. The warning had clearly penetrated his entire being but there was still the little matter of the stunt that Fai pulled in order to deliver it. It took him a moment to realize that the mage hadn't yet released his hand and was obviously awaiting the ninja's reaction. Kurogane scoffed loudly and snatched his wrist away from Fai's grasp.

"Drunken idiot!" He growled but gave Fai a look that the mage could clearly read. Kurogane was grateful for the warning and just putting up appearances. Not that he approved of how the warning was delivered, but it would have been a right pain gathering information while running from the castle guard.

Fai looked back at the waitress who was blushing furiously and unsure if she should feel jealous since the kiss didn't land on her lips. "I'm sorry, where were we?" Fai asked sweetly, tuning out Mokona's blathering.

Syaoran did everything he could to ignore the incident at the bar and focused on the game. Not that it was really anything too important, but he somehow managed to get a hand of five ones. The man next to him scoffed loudly after drawing his next card and threw down his hand in defeat. The man had just drawn a ten, accompanied with the rest of his high numbered cards, he would not likely have won, despite not knowing Syaoran's winning hand. In the end it had been close between Syaoran and the man across from him that had given him the 'iles. He held a hand of all ones and a two card, giving him one point over Syaoran's.

"Yer good kid." The man slurred and smiled goofily. "Th' goddess herself mus' be on yer side!"

Syaoran took his pile of 'iles, signaling his leaving the game and turned a curious look on the man. "The goddess?" He asked.

"You're from pretty far away if you don't know about the goddess." He replied, suddenly not quite so drunk. "Says she's the beauty that sent us the feather so we could win the war. Adorned with beautiful wings full of magical feathers that can each grant a different wish, possessing a different power. She's as forgiving and as kind as they come. But she knows her feathers aren't something to be taken lightly so she's only given us one because they can be misused. All it takes is one wrong motive and her powers will be used for evil opening them up to the Dark Deity. If that happens…" Then man hung his head. "…we'll all be doomed for eternity." He said softly. "That's why the king sealed the feather in the temple. Only the king can break the seal to use the feather for times where the country and its people are in dire need of a miracle."

Syaoran couldn't believe his luck. "Only the king can break the seal? What happens if the king becomes corrupted or falls to the power of this Dark Deity?" Syaoran asked as innocently as he could muster.

"The king? Fall to the power of the Dark Deity? Now that's just crazy talk! The king is blessed by the Goddess! She would never allow such a thing to befall our king!" He said enthusiastically. "You sure seem to be enjoying this talk, kid. Not many come in here are interested in the country's past. Why don't ya check out the historical archive? It's just an hours trek north of the temple. Set upon the holy grounds where the feather was sent to us by the lovely goddess."

Syaoran's eyes light up further. "Th-thank you! I will do just that!" He said happily and looked over into Sakura's green eyes. She was smiling brightly back at him. None of this would have been possible, or at least this easy, had he not won that hand of cards and he suspected it had to do with the princess's wish of good luck.

Just then, Mokona rolled in front of Syaoran holding his head with tears in his closed eyes. "Syaoran, Kuro-rin hit Mokona… three times!" he whined. Shortly after, Fai trotted over to Syaoran and leaned against him and Sakura to scoop up Mokona.

"Kuro-wanwan's a big meanie!" He agreed and cuddled Mokona.

"Hai, hai!" Mokona cried and clung to Fai.

"I hope Syaoran gathered some useful information because it's time to leave!" Said Fai chipperly as he tugged Sakura and Syaoran out of their seats.

The brunette quickly cashed his 'iles and dished out some money to pay for their bill before he was dragged outside where Kurogane was waiting. He had been so wrapped up in the conversation that he hadn't even noticed Kurogane slip outside.

"Fai-san, why did we leave so quickly?" Sakura asked timidly.

"Hnn… because Kuro-sama isn't very good at making friends." Fai answered.

"Che!" Kurogane scoffed and closed his eyes futilely attempting to control his anger. "That guard from earlier was there. He left in a hurry and _he_ got worried." Kurogane said and jerked his thumb at Fai over his shoulder.

Fai smiled happily. "Well, Kuro-pii does look suspicious with that frown all the time. I just wanted to stay on the safe side."

Syaoran had a feeling there was a bit more going on that the two let on but he didn't question it further. If they wanted to talk about it they would.

"So, what did Syaoran-kun learn?" Fai asked, changing the subject as they walked down the street.

***

The temple guard knelt before his king, having explained everything that he had learned about the travelers, including the conversation between the drunken villager and the young boy. The king nodded his approval and ordered a small team to keep watch over the sacred grounds and ensure the travelers didn't get what they were looking for. Even if it meant making them disappear.

***

The next morning Fai and Syaoran walked down to the local diner, leaving Sakura, Mokona, and Kurogane be in the hotel room. Sakura and Mokona were still asleep and Kurogane wasn't interested in the reading portion of the trip so he stayed behind to protect the princess. The two had a quick breakfast and began their hour long hike through the pass to the sacred grounds.

"Amazing isn't it?" Fai asked as the silence had stretched on too long. Syaoran looked up quizzically and Fai continued, "How Sakura's feathers can be the foundation for a whole religion. The whole past of one country based solely on a single feather that was lost only a short time ago by our standards."

"Hai. It is." Syaoran agreed. It was almost mind boggling. That thought alone sent Syaoran into another deep web of thoughts, distracting him from the world as they walked.

Fai sighed softly as he almost danced forward at Syaoran's side trying to amuse himself as they walked the silent trail. Though, the blonde knew something was out of the ordinary but he wasn't quite ready to mention it to the brunette just yet. Surely the boy would sense it as well in time. He was rather observant for a child.

***

About thirty minutes after the two had left, Sakura and the white Manjuu awoke and were both obviously hungry. Kurogane _escorted _them down to the diner and silently ate with them as they chatted away about irrelevant things. He'd been uneasy since last night at the bar. That guard never showed up again. He would have felt more at ease if they'd been attacked in the middle of the night or on the way to the diner. At least then he would know what they were planning. But no. Nothing. Not a thing. It was far too quiet for his liking…

"Shogo-san?" Sakura asked as a male with long hair drawn into a pony tail approached the table. All three of them recognized him as the man with the powerful Kudan in the first world they visited as well as the man working with Tomoyo in Piffle during the race.

"You're Sakura-hime, correct?" The male resembling Shogo asked.

"H-hai." Sakura answered and Kurogane kept a sharp eye on Shogo.

"I must speak with you two immediately. My name is Shogo, but _she_ said you would already know that." Said the male.

"Who is _she_?" Kurogane asked suspiciously.

Shogo looked Kurogane directly in the eyes as he spoke. "My precious Tomoyo."

That certainly caught the ninja's attention. He stood immediately, almost forgetting to lay down some currency for their food. "If you're lying…" He threatened but the man put his hands up in defense.

Sakura stood and held Mokona in her arms. "Please take me to her." She said softly.

Shogo nodded and lead the way down some winding streets and eventually into a suspicious alley with a secret door. It required a special stone that Shogo held in his palm before the door was visible, then another strange shaped stone to set in the lock before the door would open followed by a secret word. Things were looking fishier and fishier as the moments passed.

Finally Kurogane couldn't take it anymore and he grabbed Shogo by the arm, stopping him. "We're not going any further until you explain what's going on." He demanded.

Shogo nodded. "This is a safe area to explain… I'm the leader of one of the rebellion groups. We know about the feather's true origins, or as much of it as we can understand, and we know the true intent of it in the eyes of our so called king. My precious Tomoyo has the gift of sight and thus is one of the hunted persons." Shogo's gloved hands tightened into fists. "I… I didn't believe it at first either. If I had… Primera-chan would still…" He shook his head and collected his thoughts.

"Tomoyo instructed me to locate you and bring you to her immediately. She has had a vision and thinks your party might be in trouble." Shogo explained.

Satisfied, Kurogane released Shogo's arm.

"We must hurry. It may already be too late…" Shogo said and continued quickly down the corridor.

***


	2. Chapter 2

The old structure made of stone came into view. There was a grand archway just before the entrance sealed with two wooden doors. They had been informed that it was a public place and thus was open to anyone seeking information on the past. However, something told him that invitation didn't include them.

Syaoran still hadn't slipped from his deep thoughts. Which also meant he hadn't noticed the danger slowly closing in on them as they approached the structure. Fai sighed softly and attempted to draw Syaoran from his thoughts enough to notice.

"Syaoran-kun, you really enjoy these sorts of trips, don't you?" Fai observed.

"Oh, yes." He sounded startled for a moment, not expecting Fai to speak. He was usually left well enough alone with his own thoughts. "I've always enjoyed learning about the past."

"Then this should be very enjoyable for you." Fai continued, searching the boy's eyes for any form of realization or indication that he'd detected trouble as well.

"Un." Syaoran nodded and began to slip back into his thoughts.

Fai sighed once more. It really seemed as if Syaoran was completely oblivious. Gracefully the blonde side stepped behind the boy and attempted to scoot him just out of the way. Unfortunately, Fai's suspicious were not entirely correct. He knew the target had been Syaoran. He knew where the enemies were shooting from. What he didn't know was that the weapon was somewhat clumsy and the enemy's aim was off.

Syaoran heard the sound of a bow string snapping, releasing what he suspected was an arrow. At the same time, Fai had vanished behind him and gently shoved him. He turned to face the blonde in time to see an arrow pierce through the magician's back. Syaoran noticed the feather fletched to the end of the ancient arrow was one of Sakura's feathers. The boy could only stare wide eyed as the arrow seemed to vanish within Fai's body.

"Fai-san!"

It moved in slow motion. The tip touched the magician's back then the feather began to glow a vibrant blue. The arrow slid in slowly, as if magically, undamaging the skin as it passed. The length of the arrow should have shown through the mage's chest, however it didn't. It was as if the arrow had been shot into a different dimension.

Fai's eyes widened as the arrow entered his body, soon overwhelming him with magical power. Syaoran saw a red ringed glow line the outer edges of Fai's ice blue irises and pupil. Apart from the glow and the sudden almost ragdoll effect on Fai's body he appeared to be alive and well. Uninjured even.

"Fai-san?" Syaoran asked with no response whatsoever at first. Then the eyes slowly lifted to lock with his and the boy shivered. Something was wrong. The look in Fai's eyes wasn't Fai.

***

Tomoyo sat in a small wooden chair at a small wooden table. She raised her eyes when she heard her guests enter the room and smiled. But something seemed odd about her gaze. It was unfocused and blank. Kurogane was hesitant to move to her side. This was, of course, not his Tomoyo-hime.

"Welcome. But I'm afraid you have arrived too late…" Tomoyo said softly in their direction. Her hand felt along the table and she located the item she was looking for; a small book. She opened it to a marked page and held it up for the others to see. It was an old artist's rendering of Sakura appearing to be about ten years older in flowing dresses and wrapped in long elegant wings. Each feather in the wings bore the patter of Sakura's feathers. There was a caption at the bottom that they couldn't read.

Tomoyo smiled again. "Sakura-hime, you are our goddess. The first person to ever have _the sight_ saw a vision of your face just before the feather appeared in our world. He painted this picture and, not having a name for you, called you _the goddess_. It was said that you granted the feather to us in our desperate time to free us. But he later found out through another vision that these feathers contain your precious memories and that you would surely return one day to retrieve it. Each of those with _the sight_ have made sure to pass down the story from generation to generation so that one day the feather could be returned."

Shogo brought out a pot of tea and four cups to the table then sat down next to Tomoyo. He carefully poured tea into all four cups and slid them to the different seats before motioning for everyone to take a seat.

Kurogane watched as Tomoyo delicately slid her hand along the table's smooth surface until her hand bumped the cup. Her fingers fumbled up the side until they found the handle and she lifted it to her lips. His crimson eyes narrowed.

"What happened to your eyesight?" The ninja asked.

"Those with _the sight_ lose their vision due to the curse." Shogo answered spitefully.

"The curse?" Sakura asked softly, clutching her tea cup in both hands.

"The king cast a curse on the land declaring that anyone with future sight would lose their eyesight because they are children of the Dark Deity. Those who have lost their eyesight are immediately arrested, never to be seen again." Shogo continued. "My Primera… She lost her sight in an accident and was caught. Tomoyo warned me but back then… I didn't believe in the conspiracy so I didn't listen. And because of that… I wasn't there to protect my Primera. They took her away." He growled. Tomoyo looked saddened and slid her free hand across the table to find Shogo's, holding it comfortingly.

The room fell silent. Kurogane even ignored the white fluff ball sucking down his tea. The Manjuu had been exceptionally quiet. Perhaps he knew when to keep his mouth closed, the ninja considered.

"If this is happening… do you think Fai-san and Syaoran-kun will be ok? They should know this too." Mokona piped up finally, sounding a little worried.

Before Kurogane could inwardly groan at the sound of Mokona's voice, he spotted something even more unsettling. Tomoyo-hime averted her sightless eyes and seemed to look even more mundane. Tomoyo knew something she wasn't telling them.

"What's going to happen to Fai and the kid?" Kurogane demanded keeping his line of sight trained on the sightseer. Sakura gasped softly and looked between Kurogane and Tomoyo.

Shogo jumped out of his chair, ready to defend the princess. He didn't like the ninja's threatening aura. Especially when it was aimed at Tomoyo.

Tomoyo kept a tight hold on Shogo's hand and shook her head. "It's ok, Shogo-san…" She lifted her blank gaze to Kurogane again. "They're in trouble. At this very moment, events are being set into motion that will determine the outcome of not only the future of this country but that of your friends as well. I have not been able to see beyond this point so I do not know how things will turn out…"

Kurogane stood quickly. "I'm going to find them."

***

"Fai-san…?" Syaoran asked again and took a step back. The red glow in his eyes wasn't the only indication that something was wrong. Syaoran could feel clashing auras. Fai showed no recognition to his own name. He didn't seem to be moving at all. Syaoran suspected it might have to do with the inner battle. Whatever it was had his body but couldn't completely subdue Fai's heart.

Four men armed with swords, clad in light armor stepped out of the thick brush behind Fai. One was cursing angrily about missing his target and something about 'that skinny idiot getting in the way'. Fai had been trying to protect him. He had been too busy buried in his thoughts to notice the ambush and because of that irresponsibility, Fai was now in trouble.

"Don't move kid. If we can't nail you with the arrow, we're going to have to take you by force." The guard from the temple announced and readied his sword. Syaoran took one more glance at Fai before settling into a battle stance. He would fight these men then take Fai somewhere safer until they could figure out how to save him.

The first man came at Syaoran and was easily evaded and taken down with a single kick. The second charged in and was also quickly dealt with. These men obviously weren't used to kicking techniques against their swords. They thought this would be an easy fight because there were four of them and Syaoran was unarmed. They had been wrong. The remaining two stared for a minute and decided to charge Syaoran at once. An explosion behind them sent the two men to the ground before they could even reach Syaoran.

The boy's eyes lifted to meet Fai's. The blonde magician was holding out two fingers as if he'd just cast a spell. The look of blind determination on his face unsettled the younger male. Silently, those fingers began drawing out a spell in the air once more. The boy took that as the sign to run. Fai wasn't in his right mind, that was obvious. Something was different though. The magic Fai was using didn't feel like his own.

***

From a distance as Kurogane, Sakura, Tomoyo, and Shogo ran through the woods towards the sacred grounds, they saw an explosion. Mokona was clinging tightly to Kurogane's cloak. He squeaked and his eyes popped open.

"Mekkyon!" Mokona chirped. "That was the feather's power!"

Kurogane cursed and picked up speed, leaving the others in the dust. "Oi, Manjuu! The kid's sword!" Kurogane called and the white fluff ball summoned Hien and spit it out. He drew his own sword, Souhi, and charged forward until he could see Fai and Syaoran surrounded by the unconscious guards. Crimson eyes widened as the kid narrowly dodged a blast of magic sent in his direction by Fai.

"Your friend… he's being controlled by the king using the powers of the feather." Tomoyo explained as she held tightly to Shogo who was carrying her in his arms.

Kurogane studied Syaoran. The boy had a bloodied up leg and what appeared to be a burn on his right arm. Just then, Syaoran tripped and fell to the ground as Fai finished a spell that launched in his direction.

"Che!" Kurogane rushed to intercept, leaving the fluff ball behind for safety. He drew his own sword and cut through the magic, with some difficulty. His path sent him towards the mage. His other arm continued the slashing motion with Hein, striking Fai in the side of the jaw with the sheathed sword. Kurogane hadn't actually expected the attack to land. Though, knowing that it did gave him an edge.

"Teme! Whoever you are, you aren't that mage! You may have his body but you can't use it like him." He growled and jumped back, tossing Hein to Syaoran. He sheathed Souhi and pulled the sword from his belt. "I won't even need the blade to defeat you." He added.

Fai righted himself once more and began drawing spells again. Kurogane and Syaoran jumped aside only to catch a spell right in the face, knocking Syaoran back.

"Stay back, kid. I'll take care of him. You just keep after the princess and make sure she isn't hit by a stray attack." Kurogane said confidently and held up the sheathed sword. Truthfully, the attacks were powerful, and he would like to use his sword if he could but he didn't want to kill Fai. After all, it wasn't his fault at the moment.

As the magician began writing another spell, Kurogane rushed him, dodging to the side from the attack then going in for an attack of his own. Unlike last time, this time Fai caught the sheathed sword. His reflexes were gradually increasing. He began drawing a spell mere inches from Kurogane's face. All the ninja could do was act or he would be in a world of pain. The sword slid from the sheath, the tip cutting the mage's cheek by accident. Using his grip on the sheath, he tried to pull the mage forward and off balance as he brought the hilt of the sword towards his stomach. He didn't want to do any serious damage but he wanted to knock the mage back a bit, or at the very least, survive this next attack.

The mage began to fall forward and the hilt in Kurogane's fist came close to colliding… Fai vanished. Kurogane had time to look up and catch himself as the attack plowed into his back.

"Kurogane!" Sakura cried out.

The ninja had to pick himself up off the ground, hearing the princess shriek his name out of worry. "I'll make you pay for that when I find the person pulling the strings…" He snarled. The sheath had been lost somewhere in the explosion but he kept a tight hold of Souhi.

***

The king stood before a large glass cylinder running from the ceiling to the floor in a dark room. The tube was light inside and scrolled over the glass in glowing red magic was the pattern of Sakura's feather. Inside the glass was a floating image of Fai, seemingly unconscious. Next to the cylinder was a large video screen displaying what Fai could see through his eyes. The king's eyes narrowed as Fai's vision shifted to the young princess shrieking her comrade's name as he fell to the ground. The king's gaze shifted from the screen to Fai.

"Who is she?" He demanded. His inquiry was met with silence. He slammed his staff down on the ground and the midnight blue stone began to glow. He tapped it against the glass, sending a magical charge through the tube, causing Fai obvious pain.

"I'll ask again. Who is she?"

"Sakura-hime…" The response by Fai sounded dazed and tired.

The king looked back at the screen. She looked like that crazy man's rendering of the goddess. Far too much like the goddess.

"What is she doing here?" He demanded once more.

"Gathering her feathers…" Fai replied. His eyes never opened. He was kept in a semi-conscious state.

"So, she is here to take my feather, is she?" The king mused.

"…not yours…" Fai struggled against the control gaining himself another magical shock.

"Kill her." He demanded and Fai's body reacted to the order.

***

Fai turned to Sakura, his eyes set on her as he began to draw his spell in the air. The blonde began rushing towards the princess while casting his spell leaving little time for anyone to think before they reacted. Sakura hugged Mokona tight, both staring in fear as their friend rushed towards them to kill them.

"Hime!" Syaoran panicked and drew his sword, running towards Fai. Acting on instinct, he would stop her attacker any way necessary to save his princess.

Sakura's eyes met Fai's and they connected for a moment. In that moment time stood still and fear vanished. Sakura's eyes filled with tears and she too ran forward to meet Fai's attack head on. There was a bright flash as everyone collided. The battle would end one way or another at this very moment…

As the dust and light cleared, Tomoyo and Shogo could see clearly how the events had played out. Kurogane had intercepted Syaoran's sword, blocking with his own and preventing the boy from harming Fai. Sakura's arms were thrown around Fai's neck, holding the magician in a tight hug with tears streaming down her cheeks. Fai's spell had been cut short, canceled in mid attack. Wide blue eyes slowly softened as the glowing red faded from them.

Sakura fell limp against Fai who caught her in his arms and held her before she could slip away to the ground. The lovely princess had fallen asleep. Kurogane silently sheathed his sword and turned away from the boy, not in the mood to explain his actions. He just had a feeling that things would turn out ok. Just a feeling… The ninja stared back at Tomoyo, who was smiling softly even though she couldn't see anything going on in before her. As he had suspected, she knew.

He left the little group and walked towards Tomoyo. "You knew how things would turn out." He wasn't blaming her. He understood that there were things the sightseers couldn't reveal until after it had happened, but he was curious as to what exactly had happened.

"Hai… I'm sorry for deceiving you." Tomoyo said softly. "However, I truthfully hadn't seen this outcome." She continued. "I saw a much graver one, but the end result had been the same. In the end Sakura-hime freed the magician of the king's control but only after many deaths leaving just the two of them."

"How did the princess do that, exactly?" Kurogane asked.

"Sakura-hime's embrace placed their bodies close enough that hers could draw out the fragment of the feather that was being used to control the magician. It is now safely stored inside Sakura's body, however she will not regain those memories or her consciousness until the rest of the feather is returned to her." Tomoyo explained.

"Why was this time different?" Kurogane asked, still full of so many questions.

"Because Sakura-hime wasn't there the first time. You, Mokona, and Sakura-hime were still in the diner when this happened. I hoped that, if Sakura could make it here in time, she might know what to do. But I had to wait until the feather was within your friend or you might never get it back."

Kurogane thought he understood and glanced back at the others to make sure everyone was all right. Sakura wouldn't be waking up soon but also, Fai hadn't hurt her. It was then that the ninja realized Sakura hadn't fallen asleep just yet. She was struggling.

"I… heard Fai…" She said softly up to the blonde who nodded. "I could hear you crying for help… but you weren't talking." She continued. "Did I… did I help Fai?" She asked, barely hanging on to her consciousness.

"Hai, Sakura-chan. You did." Fai answered and the princess smiled.

"Thank goodness…" She relaxed and finally slipped into slumber.

Mokona looked at the magician sadly. "Fai-san was trapped and Mokona couldn't help." The little puff ball said in a melancholy tone. Fai gently put a hand on Mokona's head.

"It's ok, Mokona. Sakura-chan knew exactly what to do." Fai replied.

Syaoran looked up for the first time since the fight. "It's because Sakura-hime has always been able to hear things no one else can. She can feel the emotions of things that cannot speak…"

Fai smiled. Their Sakura was a very special girl indeed. They all knew it even if she didn't believe it herself.

"Ano…" Tomoyo interjected timidly. "You've taken half of the king's feather. He will surely be seeking retribution now that his powerful weapon has been defeated. Even without the feather his magical powers are still great. You must stay on your guard."

Shogo nodded and stood tall. "I wasn't much help in this battle, but I will assist you against the king—"

"Iye." Kurogane cut him off. "Your job is to protect Tomoyo-hime."

"Demo—"

"I said no." Kurogane growled. "Leave the king to us."

Shogo remained silent after that, sticking close to Tomoyo's side. He would protect Tomoyo, the one who tried to save his beloved. He would not make the same mistake twice and lose another precious person.

Tomoyo gave them directions to the king's castle and the little team began their little trek to defeat the king. Kurogane and Fai scouted ahead as Syaoran carried the sleeping princess and Mokona. The boy had been pretty silent since the fight, obviously feeling guilty about the decision he almost made to harm Fai.

Kurogane fell back to walk with the boy as Fai continued on ahead. "Oi, kid… he doesn't blame you." The ninja attempted to consol the boy.

"But I—"

"Reacted on instinct to protect your Princess. He doesn't blame you."

"But… you knew he wouldn't hurt her… I should have known too." Syaoran said hanging his head slightly.

"I knew because I trusted Tomoyo-hime." Kurogane replied simply. "We all acted according to our instincts. Yours and mine are the same as Sakura's. We were all defending someone we care about. Sakura felt strongly that she could save that mage."

Syaoran nodded and took that to heart. He felt a bit better now, hearing the explanation from Kurogane. When the ninja felt his job was done, he moved back to the front with Fai.

"Hnn, Kuro-muh did his job as the caring father." Fai smirked.

"Che!" Kurogane glanced at Fai out of the corner of his eyes to keep tabs on what the mage's current expression in case anything managed to slip past his little mask. Upon occasion, it proved fruitful. "What about you?"

"What about me?" Fai asked coyly.

Kurogane growled. The magician was hiding something but he wasn't quite sure what it was, so he attempted to pry a bit. "That magic…"

"…wasn't mine." Fai completed. "It was all drawn from the feather."

"All of it?" Kurogane wasn't quite convinced.

"Hai. Every last spell. It was just delivered in the form my body is most comfortable with, making it appear to be mine, but in fact, it wasn't." Fai explained with a casual shrug. Then the blonde's expression softened and he put a hand on Kurogane's shoulder lightly. "It still hurts…" His tone almost sounded guilty.

"Che! I've had worse." He said and shrugged Fai's hand away.

"…gomen."

Kurogane looked up and noticed Fai was deliberately avoiding eye contact.

"Even if it wasn't my power and I couldn't control it, it was still my hands casting the spells…"

"Shut up." Kurogane replied gruffly. "You couldn't stop it so it wasn't your fault. There's no reason for you to feel guilty over something you had no power over. It's just stupid."

"Ah'ah! There you go again, Kuro-pon! Being the caring father." Fai chirped with false happiness, avoiding his own problems once more.

"Idiot." Kurogane growled. He hated when Fai avoided things.

Within no time at all they encountered an elite guard team with the intentions of stopping them. The commanding officer appeared before them holding out his hand to stop them.

"Halt!" He pointed a finger at Fai. "You are under arrest! Your crime is falling under the influence of the Dark Deity. You were observed using magical powers and will be punished for your crime determined by the nature of the offence." He announced. "If you resist arrest, we will be forced to use any means necessary to subdue you and your evil ways!"

"Che!" Kurogane unsheathed his weapon. "I'd like to see you try!" He snarled.

Fai put a hand up to stop Kurogane. "Can you tell, Syaoran?" The blonde asked the kid who had already fallen into an offensive stance in front of his princess who had been set gently on the ground.

"Un!" He agreed with a nod. Kurogane stared between them, utterly lost.

"They're magic users as well." Fai explained to the confused ninja. "If you had rushed headlong into them with just your sword, you could have been unnecessarily injured." The blonde thought this over for a moment and considered something.

"If I turn myself in without resistance, what will become of my traveling companions?" The magician asked the guards who seemed puzzled by his cooperation.

"W-well… they will not be harmed. You are the only one who has committed a crime here." The commander explained, still sounding a bit confused.

Fai smiled brightly and held his hands out to allow the guards to restrain him however they saw fit. "Then I surrender." He chirped happily.

Kurogane and Syaoran stared at him dumbfounded while Mokona seemed to have a little panic attack. "Fai! You mustn't!"

Fai smiled back at Mokona sweetly. "It will be ok, Mokona." The blonde reassured the little fluff ball and locked his gaze with Kurogane. There was a temporary silent exchange between the two that Syaoran noticed but couldn't quite read then the dark haired ninja sheathed his sword and relaxed. He closed his eyes without another word and acted as if he had nothing more to do with the situation leaving Syaoran torn.

The guard warily approached Fai, expecting this to be a trick, but the blonde didn't move to retaliate as the man approached and locked a pair of intricate cuffs to his wrists. Once both latches were locked, the cuffs seemed to hum with a slight dim glow. Immediately, Fai felt somewhat lightheaded and realized the cuffs were emitting a magic seal to prevent the wearer from using magical powers. He simply chuckled internally at how futile that was, not to mention the spell wasn't near strong enough for him.

He smiled brightly at the guard who seemed even more perplexed. It was painfully obvious that this man wasn't a normal spellcaster. Most lost consciousness under the spell of the sealing cuffs, however this man hardly even faltered. Perhaps this man was innocent…? The guard shook his head. No, that couldn't be. Their lord had specifically said this man was evil and dangerous. There was no mistaking it then.

The other three men accompanying their commander looked dismayed. They knew something was wrong as well when the blonde didn't topple over leaving them a little confused as to how to proceed. They'd never actually accompanied a conscious spellcaster back to the castle before. They had no idea what to expect.

Fai simply waited patiently for instructions from the guards who uneasily surrounded him to ensure he couldn't take off and escape, not that it appeared like he would. The blonde glanced over when he heard Kurogane shift uncomfortably, not approving of this idea. The magician just smiled as he was ushered away by the guards. The commander stayed back for a moment, shooting a look at the others.

"Please do not take any rash actions. I would hate to have to arrest the comrades of such a cooperative criminal. With his level of cooperation, I'm sure he will be reformed quickly and returned to you." The commander assured them, unsure if he could keep the promise, but surely hoping he could. From the looks of things, they sure needed a bright side to whatever nightmare they'd just been through. "Also… there is a medical facility on the eastern side of the village that you might want to visit." He mentioned just before turning and leaving.

Both Syaoran and Mokona turned their stares onto Kurogane, obviously wondering the same thing; why did you let them take Fai away? Kurogane let out an annoyed grunt in an attempt to brush off their accusatory looks but it didn't seem to deter them.

"What?" He demanded.

"Kuro-daddy let the mean men take Fai-mommy away." Mokona spoke sadly.

The ninja ignored the nicknames with an angry twitch but didn't quite feel like putting in the effort to clobber the Manjuu for saying such a ridiculous thing. "I didn't _let _them do anything. The idiot surrendered, or have you forgotten already?"

"It seemed as though you and Fai-san came to an understanding a moment ago…" Syaoran began quietly as he lifted Sakura back into his arms, holding her securely. "You two have something planned." It was a statement not a question.

Kurogane stared at him for a moment. The kid _was_ observant, he'd give him that. "What about it?" The ninja shrugged, not quite ready to explain just yet.

"I want to help." Syaoran replied, not letting this drop. "Fai-san turned himself in knowing none of us were really in the condition to properly protect ourselves if he resisted arrest. Even if I don't like the idea, it was still the correct course of action to take in this situation."

"First, we need to treat our wounds and gather supplies. If all goes as planned, we won't need to do much at all for things to work in our favor now that Fai is inside."

The boy frowned. "When did you and Fai-san have time to plan this?"

"We didn't." Kurogane said simply with a shrug as he briskly began walking back to the village, hopefully with Mokona, Syaoran, and Sakura in tow.

***


	3. Chapter 3

Fai didn't even have the chance to rest up in a cell when he arrived at the castle. The sun was already setting and with things moving this quickly, there was the possibility that he could be executed at dawn for his crime. That certainly didn't sit well with him. He was brought before the king, forced to kneel and surrounded by six armed guards with two more at the king's sides.

The king held up the staff that he had used to deliver the magical jolts to Fai when he had been contained by the powers of the feather. The lovely jeweled end had been shattered and Fai was almost certain he could see the tip of the other feather half secured inside. The king dismissed the guards to stand outside his door, leaving just the two at his sides. They appeared to be rather sleazy-looking. Probably two of the few that actually knew of the king's wrongdoings, hence why they were allowed to remain in the room. They moved to secure Fai by the shoulders and the king stood and approached the blonde, still on his knees.

"How did you break my spell?" The king demanded.

"That was not your spell." Fai simply responded, earning himself a painful strike to the face with the broken staff. The blonde tasted blood on his tongue and probed the broken cheek. He made a mental note not to do that again.

"Where is the feather?" The king demanded once more, expecting an answer.

"Returned to its original owner." Fai replied, and surprisingly enough, he didn't receive a beating for it. The king pondered this.

"That girl. The one that so resembles the sketches of the goddess." The king growled and looked down at Fai. He placed the staff against Fai's temple and used it to tilt Fai's head to the side to look him over. "You're not struggling." He observed.

That wasn't the kind of comment Fai had expected. He simply stared back at the king, somewhat confused.

"Under those bindings, others struggle to keep their consciousness, but you remain conscious effortlessly. How could someone so young have surpassed my magical powers that I spent my whole life developing? You're a follower of that wretched princess Tomoyo, aren't you? She hired you to defeat me! I won't give up the throne! Not to you and not to her!"

Fai's eyes saddened as he looked up at the man, dulling for a moment to display a distant painful memory. He told himself it wasn't his fault. The king had clearly lost his mind long before he had arrived. A paranoid man who lived in fear that one day there would be powers greater than his to take away his throne. Fai couldn't help but feel sorry for him on some level. This time, it had nothing to do with twins…

"D-don't look at me like that!" He yelled and struck Fai with the staff once more. The force sent Fai to the ground and out of the grip of the two guards. "I am not to be pitied! Because it is I that has won this time! I have defeated her most powerful magician! There is nothing that child can do now!"

The guards really didn't know what to do. The prisoner was loose but the king had lost his mind. They wondered if it wouldn't be safer to just take their chances with the spellcaster and run. The king was clearly unfit to give orders now.

"T-take him to the repentance room immediately! He'll be executed in the morning!" The king bellowed but the guards didn't budge. Both men turned tail and ran, just barely managing not to stumble over Fai as they did so.

The magician quickly rolled to his feet and began attempting to slip a wrist free of the restraints as the king came at him swinging the staff wildly. The blonde skillfully dodged the strikes but could do nothing to retaliate or actually block without his hands. For a moment, he'd wished he'd studied Syaoran's moves more closely, though he was sure he didn't have nearly enough power in his kicks to pull them off cleanly.

***

Kurogane tugged at one of the bandages with an annoyed growl. It was too tight. Damn nurse didn't know what the hell she was talking about. He wasn't bleeding _that_ badly. He tugged on it again.

"Kuro-wanwan is being a bad puppy and chewing on his wounds! Fai-mommy will be upset if Kuro-daddy chews through his bandage!" Mokona chirped since Fai wasn't here to say it. "He'll say, "Now, Kuro-daddy, you're setting a bad example for the children! Behave yourself!"." Mokona imitated Fai's voice.

Kurogane glared at the meat bun but didn't tug on his bandages further. The stupid little Manjuu was right. Fai would chide him for struggling with his bandages, especially since Fai knew degree of the injuries preventing Kurogane from passing them off as just little scratches. Not to mention he was sure the idiot still felt guilty for them.

The ninja felt eyes on him and glanced over. Tomoyo-hime and Shogo were tagging along once again. The princess's sightless eyes were trained on him yet he could tell they didn't see him. He couldn't help but feel a surge of anger towards the man that cursed her to such a fate. Even if she wasn't _his_ Tomoyo-hime, she was _still_ Tomoyo.

The man, Shogo, that they'd met before in different worlds, was guiding Tomoyo by her hand carefully while holding Sakura in his other arm. Syaoran was busy tending to his own wounds as they headed back to the castle. Something was nagging at the little brunette. How quickly would they deal with Fai's magic using? What if they didn't make it on time? They could still retrieve the rest of the feather but they would still be missing a member of their party. And Sakura… The princess had tried so hard to save him. She would be devastated. They had to save him.

"Think you two can handle all the castle guards on your own?" Shogo asked skeptically, helping Tomoyo dodge a fallen limb.

"Keh! You take care of your job and we'll do ours." Kurogane replied cockily.

***

Fai was at a minor disadvantage. He was faster and stronger but he was bound and weakened. The king was wailing madly at him with the broken staff. The blonde kept trying to jerk a hand free of a cuff with no luck as he ran and dodged. One swipe narrowly missed skimming his chest with a jagged end of the rod causing Fai to fall back through a door. He caught his balance and continued down the stairs quickly with the king in tow bellowing things about never escaping.

Unable to reduce speed, Fai turned around quickly so his shoulder took the brunt of his stop against the nearest solid vertical object. He collided with a clank against a wall made of strong bars.

"A jail cell?" He turned and peaked through the bars using the little light that flooded the room thanks to the open door. He noticed several empty cells lining the whole wall. Several skeletons could be found and a corpse—no! The body was alive! His eyes adjusted to the darkness and he realized there was a female staring towards him. She looked extremely startled by all the noise and had begun crying. In this light that was all he could tell at the moment.

"Nigette!" A female voice shrieked.

Fai's eyes saddened and he scanned the dark room for something to pry the door open with, not that he could really use something if he found it. Though the light was dim, he could tell immediately that this woman didn't have the use of her eyes. This was likely where they kept the sightseers and if his suspicions were correct, he knew who this young woman was. He just needed a better look at her.

"Stand to the back of the cell." Fai ordered quickly and soot in front of the door.

The girl looked terrified for a moment but nodded and quickly moved to the back of the cell as Fai had instructed and waited with her hands on the walls so she knew where she was.

"When you hear a loud crash, I want you to run towards my voice with all your might, hands outstretched. Don't worry. Just act." He said softly and she nodded.

Fai turned to face the stairs as he heard the king running towards him. The magician held his ground until the very last moment as the staff came down to strike. He stumbled quickly out of the way and the powerful object came down onto the old rusty metal, knocking the lock off the door.

"Now!" Fai called to her and she did as told, running at full force towards the door as the king fell out of the way. With her hands stretched out in front of her, she shoved the door open and kept on running until she collided with Fai who had acted as a barrier between her and the wall.

Using his shoulder to guide her, Fai lead her back upstairs quickly. The girl had clasped her hands around Fai's upper arm securely, terrified to be left alone. She frowned slightly. "You're bound?" She asked, realizing Fai's hands seemed bolted in place.

Fai ignored her question for the moment and pressed her up against another wall in the corner of the large throne room. It was just behind a large elaborate display case making it somewhat sheltered.

"I want you to stay here. If anyone tries to grab you, fight them off with all your strength." Fai instructed and she nodded again. "Shogo-san will be here soon, I promise."

The girl's eyes widened and she pressed closer into the corner, sliding down to sit. "Thank you…" She said softly to Fai before she heard him run off.

***

They could see the castle by now and had also noticed that there were no guards. People seemed to be fleeing the castle, as a matter of fact. Kurogane suspected Fai might be involved in this and picked up his speed leaving Syaoran to struggle to keep up with him. Shogo could do nothing but keep going at his original pace. The ninja stopped one of the guards, knocking him flat on his face.

"Oi, what's happening in there?" He demanded in a rushed tone.

The guard spluttered and struggled but finally gave up and just answered. "Th-the king has lost his mind! He's gone insane!"

Kurogane left the man lying on the ground. He needed to get to Fai before the king tore him up. Fai was the only one who could drive someone insane that quickly.

"Mekkyon! I feel the power of the feather!" Mokona called to Kurogane from Syaoran's shoulder.

***

Fai yelped as a little stumble over the bunched up rug on the floor allowed the king to land an attack to his left shoulder, jagged edges breaking the skin, and sending him completely to the floor. He sprawled there for a moment, slightly dazed, as the king rebounded for another strike to finish Fai off. The mage bent both knees and kicked at the man's chest as hard as he could, planting both heels firmly into his ribs. It stopped the man's advances immediately but also angered him further. Just before he could retaliate to Fai's counter, a small body plowed into him from the side, knocking him down.

Fai's eyes widened as he saw the young girl use herself to topple the man. Long light blue-green hair curtained past Fai's vision before pooling on the ground as she landed. Her sightless amber eyes closed tightly in fear of what was to come now that she'd acted. She hadn't considered the consequences of her actions, or perhaps she didn't care what they were so long as she saved her savior and struck a blow at her captor. Either way, Fai had to admit that not only was her timing impeccable, but her ability to target sound was dead on.

The magician rolled to the side then scrambled to his feet and waited for the woman to do the same, allowing her to cling to his uninjured arm. They both ran to the door, Fai leading the way as the woman did her absolute best to run blind and trust him. Only meters from the doors and Fai saw them begin to open. His heart skipped a beat as blue eyes met crimson and he knew everything was over now.

"Kuro-m—…" Still at a dead run, Fai's eyes slid closed and he and the young woman fell into Kurogane's arms. The ninja caught the blonde and held him tightly, righting the girl and breaking her death hold on Fai's arm. He was confused to see her with Fai but assumed the Magician would explain everything when he woke.

"Primera!?" Shogo's voice cried as he temporarily abandoned Sakura and Tomoyo to rush to the young woman's side. He nearly tackled her and held her tightly in his arms, both shedding tears of joy to be able to hold eachother again.

Syaoran was, once again, holding Sakura in his arms and standing by Tomoyo's side, though the dark haired princess didn't remain there for long. Her eyes drifted to Fai's hands bound behind his back and noticed something.

"Kurogane, his right hand…" She said and motioned to the unconscious mage in his arms. The ninja's hand slid down Fai's arm until it found the hand balled into a tight fist. It took a bit of force to pry his fingers open but when he did, the ninja located the other half of the feather. His eyes softened before widening and turning back to Tomoyo.

"How did you—?"

"My sight has returned." Tomoyo replied with a sweet smile. "With the king's magic nullified, the curse no longer exists on the sightseers."

"Nullified?" Primera asked, breaking up the happy hugs with Shogo. "Does that mean… I killed him?" She asked with terror in her still sightless eyes. She'd never killed anyone before… never even considered it and somehow she'd done it by accident.

With Fai slung over one shoulder, Kurogane walked over and handed the half a feather to Syaoran silently. Obediently, the boy brought the feather to Sakura and watched as it entered the princess's body. She could sleep soundly now and recover her lost memory. He held her close then looked up at Kurogane who was trying to inspect the magician's wounds without drawing attention to himself.

There were a few small cuts, a deep gash in his shoulder that worried Kurogane to some degree, and bloody red abrasions on Fai's wrists that could only have been caused by struggling to slip free of the wretched magical handcuffs. Without the magical seal, it was very simple for Kurogane to pry them open and free the magician's wrists. He tossed the useless metal aside.

"Despite all of that he still managed to retrieve Sakura's feather." Syaoran said softly and caught Kurogane's attention.

"He'll live." Kurogane said gruffly and shrugged. "He'll probably even feel the annoying need to apologize for something when he wakes up."

"Primera-chan, why don't your eyes work now?" Mokona piped up from Sakura's side. The Manjuu looked concerned despite having very few detailed features.

"It's because… my Primera-chan lost her sight in an accident, before the curse. Because she is like this… they thought she was a sightseer and arrested her falsely." Shogo explained and held her closer. Mokona frowned, not liking that answer.

"Yuuko—!" Mokona's summoning cry was cut short by the dark haired Tomoyo-hime.

"I've already spoken to Yuuko-san, Mokona-chan, and we've made an arrangement. There is nothing for you to worry about." Tomoyo said with a smile.

Kurogane eyed her suspiciously. He really guessed it shouldn't surprise him that this Tomoyo knew the Witch as well. He just didn't like being left out of the loop so much, not that it could be helped in situations like this. He didn't blame her, but that didn't mean it didn't frustrate him to some degree. However, the fact that she had made an arrangement with the Witch worried him slightly.

"What kind of arrangement?" Kurogane asked with a light glare.

The princess just smiled back at him knowingly, but refusing to tell him anything. It seemed to anger him more. The smile reminded him of the idiot mage. Out of reflex, he scanned the area for the mage's face to fix him with a nice annoyed glare but, after failing in his search, he recalled that he was holding the unconscious idiot in his arms.

"Kid, bring the supplies over here so we can patch him up before we leave. Don't want him bleeding to death before we get him to the clinic." Kurogane said then lowered Fai back to the ground gently. He huffed at himself. It felt unfair to call the blonde an idiot when he was unable to prove him right. That thought proved to further annoy him because he should be able to call the idiot an idiot in his mind whenever he damn well felt like it because they were _his_ thoughts.

Syaoran interrupted Kurogane's angry thoughts before he started cursing himself in his own mind, by handing him a roll of bandages. The dark haired ninja did a very quick patch job, cleaning up the wound to the best of his limited abilities with such limited supplies then wrapped the shoulder in gauze tightly so the bleeding was more controlled. Now, if anyone deserved a good tight bandage and a nice long scolding it was this guy!

"Ok, let's head back." Kurogane said huffily as he handed the supplies back to Syaoran and gathered the blonde back into his arms.

***

Fai's blue eyes slid open slowly, blinked shut a few times before opening again and remaining open. He lifted a hand to shield the unadjusted orbs from the bright light of the open window and noticed clean crisp white bandages wrapped around his wrist. He lifted the other and noticed the same on that wrist as well. His shoulder ached as well as his head, but he wasn't quite sure why and there was a weight on his chest. That last bit worried him slightly. He started to sit up and felt the weight give way. When his eyes moved down to view the cause of this mysterious weight he saw Kurogane's arm laying lightly across his chest. The ninja's forehead was rested against the forearm, sleeping soundly with a sleeping white fluff ball curled up against the top of his head.

The blonde smiled and tried to rest his head back down but before it hit the pillow, he caught a flash of crimson. Shortly after, the weight vanished and he found himself looking up at Kurogane who acted like he'd been awake this whole time, sitting straight. Mokona shifted and awoke with a happy coo.

"Fai-san's awake!" The Manjuu chirped happily

Fai smiled playfully at the red eyed ninja. "Kuro-sama was worried about me!" He cooed happily and sat up only to be shoved back down and fixed with a stern glare.

"Che! Like hell I was!" Kurogane snarled.

"Kuro-myuu made the doctor's sedate Fai-san!" Mokona giggled happily. "He said, "Damn mage will just try to say he's fine if he wakes up before the doctors get here."." Mokona tattled and rolled around on Fai's chest.

Fai laughed and hugged Mokona, thanking it for telling him what mean old daddy did then directed his blue gaze back to the ninja who already looked pissed off and he hadn't even been awake five minutes.

"Hnn~! And what did the doctors say, Kuro-pon?" Fai asked slyly.

"That you were severely injured but didn't require the aid of healing magic to recover." Kurogane growled angrily, annoyed that Fai was being so jovial about this. He couldn't stand that the blonde didn't even seem to care that he'd been so badly injured.

"Gomen ne, Kuro-sama." Fai said softly, tuning out Mokona's nonsensical chattering. Noticing Kurogane's expression of flustered confusion, the blonde elaborated, "for making you worry." The ninja mumbled something that could have been consoling words but didn't quite make it over the noise as Sakura popped up over the other side of Fai's bed with a bright smile and a tray of food.

"I brought Kurogane-san and Fai-san lunch!" She said chipperly. "Tomoyo-hime showed me how to make these things and they taste really good!" She set the tray down next to Fai's bed and handed Kurogane and Fai each a bowl of pastries.

"Arigatou, Sakura-chan!" Fai chirped with a cat-like smile on his face and munched on one of the pastries. Mokona sucked up a few from Kurogane's bowl, causing the ninja to begin throwing things at the Manjuu who cutely dodged each soaring object. Both Fai and Sakura watched with giggles.

Fai looked up as Shogo lead the light bluish haired female to his bed. Her hand gently felt around until it grasped Fai's and she smiled brightly. In return, Fai gave her hand a soft squeeze.

"I wanted to thank you for saving me from my prison." Primera said happily and pulled Shogo closer with her other arm. "I'd been down there for so long I truly thought I wouldn't escape. The guard kept demanding I tell him my visions by order of the king but I had none to tell so he told me I would rot down there until I revealed them. I wish I could see your face so I could remember you as the one who saved me but I'm afraid I can't even do you that much…" Her voice turned sad.

Fai opened his mouth to consol her but Mokona's communicator flashed into view with Yuuko's face displayed. She appeared to be looking off towards the doorway. In the doorway stood Tomoyo, who smiled happily at the scene then nodded to Yuuko.

"I'm ready, Yuuko-san." The princess said and Yuuko nodded.

"Mokona, I'm sending you something. I would like you to give it to Tomoyo." Yuuko spoke in a calm silky voice.

"Un!" Mokona nodded and soon popped out an elegant mirror. The Manjuu caught it and handed it to the dark haired princess.

"Just look into that mirror and your wish will be granted. Hand the mirror to Primera and the wish will be complete." Yuuko explained.

Tomoyo nodded and stared into the mirror. Her eyes dulled and the mirror began to glow. A bright seal of an eye flashed across the mirror for a moment before the glow faded and the mirror looked normal again. Tomoyo's vision was once again reduced to nothing and she smiled, holding out the mirror towards Shogo and Primera.

"Primera, stare directly into the mirror. I know that you can't see it, but that doesn't matter." Yuuko instructed. Shogo held the mirror up for Primera and she did as told. A thin blue beam shot from the glass, broke off into a 'Y' shape and pierced through both of Primera's amber eyes. They seemed to gain some depth and glowed for a moment before seeming normal. The glass of the mirror shattered and disintegrated into the air harmlessly.

Primera's eyes darted from Yuuko's image to Fai's face to Shogo's face then around the room to each and every one of them before settling onto Tomoyo. "I-I can see…!" She hugged Shogo tightly and kissed him on the cheek happily then rushed to Tomoyo and hugged her as well. "Thank you, Tomoyo-hime! Thank you!"

"Oi." Kurogane butted in as the girl bounced up and down with Tomoyo. "What was the price?" He asked, though he was sure he already knew the answer.

"My sight." She replied simply.

"Which one?" Kurogane asked carefully.

Tomoyo's eyes widened slightly before her expression fell. She hadn't expected him to be this intuitive. "You are correct, Kurogane-san, in that I have lost my visions as well but that doesn't have anything to do with this wish."

Primera looked saddened that Tomoyo had to give up her sight for this wish. "How can I take our princess's sight like this?" She asked sadly.

"I don't need my sight to rule as princess of this country. I have many trustworthy people by my side to be my eyes." Tomoyo replied.

"So, you will take your place as princess and ruler?" Fai asked curiously.

She nodded and smiled brightly.

Kurogane wasn't surprised that she was a princess in this country as well. It seemed to be the running trend from world to world that Tomoyo occupied. She was always some form of authority. That was Tomoyo, after all.

The ninja decided to snatch a pastry from one of the platters and shortly after found himself fighting for it against the white manjuu. "TEME! Give that back!" He snarled and chased it. Tomoyo giggled softly as she heard the chaos. Primera and Shogo smiled happily and chatted with Syaoran.

Sakura took the chance to sneak back to Fai's side with a smile. "Fai-san…?" She started to ask a question then hesitated.

"Yes, Sakura-chan?" Fai asked sweetly, trying to encourage her to ask. He sat up on his elbows and wiggled himself into a full sitting position.

"When you were… controlled by my feather, I could hear your voice trying to call to me but I couldn't hear what you were saying. Not until that last moment, could I understand you. I've always been able to hear voices of things that couldn't speak, but I've never heard something like that… They've always been clear to me. Was that…?"

Fai smiled and put a hand on her shoulder. "I think… you could probably hear me because it was your feather within my body giving us a connection stronger than before. With my soul trapped in that barrier, I was unable to talk to any of you. You are able to hear the strong feelings of things that cannot communicate. Your feather allowed my strong feelings to slip through just enough for you to hear my voice. It wasn't until I panicked that you could hear me clearly." Fai explained. "If you hadn't been there, things would have been much worse. That leaves me in your debt, Sakura-chan. Thank you." He smiled sweetly at the young princess.

"In my debt…? No." Sakura said with a little embarrassed blush. She felt oddly happy being able to help. That feeling alone was enough of a repayment. She hated feeling useless and knowing that only she could have saved Fai in that situation made her feel special.

In the background Kurogane yelled a jumble of angry words at the meat bun as it swallowed his pastry whole then hopped into the air, beginning to glow. Hopping into the air made it easy to outmaneuver the ninja who tripped over a table and landed on top of Syaoran.

Fai smiled. "Looks like it's time to go." He said and held Sakura's hand happily.

Mokona's wings sprouted, glowing magnificently. The small group in the room smiled and waved to eachother, apart from Kurogane and Syaoran, who were still face-planted on the ground.

"Sayonara." Tomoyo said softly and the group disappeared in the bright light.

~END~


End file.
